Hand brake



Aug. 24,1926. 1,597,475

J. F. OCONNOR HAND BRAKE Filed Dec. 14,`1922 @hay Patented Aug. 24, 1926.

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JOHN F.'OCO1\TNOR, OF CHICAGO, II:LINOIS,-ASSIGl\lOR, BY MESNE ASSGNMENTSJTO W. H. MINER, INC., A` CORPORATIGN OF DELAWARE. 4

HAND BRAKE.

Application led December 14, 1922. Serial-No. 606,925.

This invention relates to improvements in hand brakes rl'orrcars... Y

ln the present practice, a common form ot hand brakes employed on railway cars is that ol' .the drop'handle l-ever and ratchet type, incombination with a vertical stall journaled in suitable bearings. In this type of vertical staff brake and `in many other types of vertical stall brakes, it frequently happens that the stall gets out of alinement with the rotating means at the top thereof, due sometimes to excessive strain on the stati and at other times to loosening of the usual lower step bearing. When this action occurs, it is obvious that there will be un` due binding of the parts requiring excessive exertion upon the part ot thebrakeman in `setting the brakes. 'n

in obfect of my invention is to provide an exceedingly simple arrangement in hand brak-es for railway cars, wherein the brakestat'f is so mounted as to prevent all binding due to bending ol the stati or loosening et lower step bearing. i Another and more specific object of the invention is to provide an arrangement in hand brak-es 'for railway cars wherein the brake stall;l and the ratchet member have a universal rocking connection with each other, thereby permitting a lateral rocking movement oit the statt'l relativeto the ratchet member to allow lor the bending and flexing of the stall during the application ol' the brakes without binding. l

Other objects of. the invention willmore clearly appear `from the description and claims hereinafter following. y

In the drawings torming a part of this specification, Figure 1 shows a vertical sectional view of a hand brake embodying my improvements. "Fig 2 shows a horizontal sectional View taken substantially on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1. And Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the ratchet member.

ln said drawings, 10 denotes th-e end wall of the car to which is secured a housing or bracket designated generally by the reference character A. The latter is formed with a back wall 11 secured by rivets 12 to the end wall 10 of the car, and a horizontally ext-ending web 13 having a bearing open-` ing 14 therein. Said bracket is also provided with a vertically extending circular wall or web 15 and a horizontally extending web located above the wall 13 andhaving a curved face 17.

The usual vertical brake staff is indicated at 18, it being understood that the vsame will have a chain winding means at its low-er end receivinga `chain connecting` with and leading to thebrake rigging. At the upper end the stall?v 18 is formed with a square portion 19.

A ratchet member 20 having an upper y and lower set of teeth 21 and 22, respective-` ly, separated by a centrally located bearing liange 23, is journaled within the recess 14 at its reduced lower end 2&1. The upper end ot the ratchet member 2O is reduced, as L l' shown at .25, `to co-act with a bearing onv` the carrier member' 26hereinatt-er described.

Operative .connection between the ratchet` i member 2O and the brake stalf for the purtion, the stal willl always be rotated 'in f` unison with the ratchet member 20, while allowing the stall A18 to adjust itself ini i substantially `the mann-er of a universal joint, Awith respect to the ratchet member 20, thus eliminating binding e-lfects due to .il

the axis of the stal getting out of alinement with the axis of the ratchet member 20.y The inwardlyV tapering `walls 26 of the opening 27 are rounded at their meeting points as indicated at 27', to provide a lulcrum for the end portion 19 ot thebrake .staff 18. Thesquare opening A27 in th-e ratchet member 2O at the point 27 is of slightly greater cross section than the square cross section of the upper end of the stall', thereby permitting the stalll to rock freely relatively to the axis of rotation of said ratchet member without binding therein.

A carrier member 26 of generally circular outline surrounds the ratchet member 20, having bearing on the web 16 .at its lower side, and provided with an upper circular bearing opening 28 adapted to receive the upper reduced end portion 25 of the ratchet member. The carrier member 26 is provided with spaced sid-e wall-s 29 having the CLI operating lever 30 pivotally mounted therebetween, v.von a bolt 3l extending through-v* said walls;

The lever 30v is of well known construc-LH tion, and .is provided with .alspringpressed pawl 32 adapted to engage' withthe 'upperE set of ratchet teeth 21.

The upper end portion of the housing` is closed by a cover plate 33 held in position by a vertically eXtendingnbolt/l lpassing s through alined recesses inthe cover plate 33,

Athe;r web/T16 andthe web-18.1 1Onf 4its lower.

set forth, is exceedingly simple and involves no additional I ezmense-fover -"other 'similar types of hand brake mechanisms-- VMIhaveherein shown and described what I now :consideri the `preferred mannenof v carrying out the inventio'nfbut the same is merely illustrative, Aand I contemplate agllch-anges and modifications that come 60 within the scope of the claims appended hereto-5r.- f j I claim l. In 'triband-.brake oraailway'fcaraqthe combination with the wall -Lof -theI iear.; .of .65 a brake staff .journaledllat` one-:of its Yendsjlpulledlilate'rallyl at said.A endytthe iopposite :i end of said statt having a portion-formed' polygonal `in cross seotionfgfamountfing spaced 70 froinvithe journaledlend-:o'f saidgstaiifand .w securedto the car! w-all,.anctnarranged to i' support the 'oppositczend .of said :brake statt; 1i said mounting including :an :operating de-l f vice- .journaled `in said mountingyvsaidli ycle-i715 vice having a polygonal bore-which taperss-m tronnits ends towardy al" Centrahpointl at ni lever ,3.8 Aby which the isamenmay :be 1naf..f\vhichfpointthewallsof'.thefibore snugly@ilv nipulatedrto disengage-zthe dogffrom thci ratchet. member; .to release the` brakes..

In Athel ioperationhof my'improved hand y braliesgtt-hey lever'BO is. raisedn'fi'om the. full. line position :shown `in Fig." ltothehori-` Zontaldotted line position l.shownfin said l l ligureV whereuponI the Spri-ngf `pressed `paw]lv 32 willobe engagedwiththeWlratchetnteethy 2l. Uponoscillating the lever30,1fthe\ratchsqu'are-.en'diof -the brake. situati? 418 willz 'rio-l tatetherlatter to wind thefbralre 'chainup-w on the'lower end thereof; @In thefeven't thatijthestai'" is`- bent -or flexed underexcessivechain'. pull or byfreasonoffthelusualflow'er f engage'the related. polygonal: prtion` ot saldi. ii

l stail'i, saidzborebeing arrangedlto permit/80 variations in the vangular displacem'entfolf v slaidfvbra'le stall ldueifto :distortion fof the stai,and1to bulging o-ly the: wall of the; lcar f1 f underfstrain. l

i 2. In a hand brake,- ltheilcoinbinationwithia a brake/statt journaledat `one'of its endsffA .and adapted to be mountedfsoas to-be pulled 'IA et ineniberA 'will be intermittently.rotated .andmthrough engagement-f with the upper.-

laterally with referencer-.to said end, theopposite .endfof saidstalf having an .velonhgated portion 'Y polygonal i cross :section gl i 90 a stationary: mounting Iassociated r lwith sa-idfi P opposite end-of saidstaif.; saidfmounti-nginoluding-..an -foperating-felement .rj-ournaledL v thereinf :said elementx having :a polygonal l step bearing becomingloosenedgor distorted,- bore ..-substanti'aflly ,fico-extensive# with the' tomatically Jtakenjca'rel lof.' by the y universal -l connection lbetween the staiY Yand the ratchet'-y member` above described; thusilxminimizing thetendencyf-to bindw"y in connection .with the "drawing, it will beV observed that the arrangement i which I vhave provided for vaccomplishing the 1 "purposes y staff. From Athe preceding description consideredllw In witness :that Il' clai-mthef'foregoing If 'have hereunto subscribed 'saidi-bore: a tapering from its ends-towardan interme-if d-iate .point -iwherefthe wal1s-of said bore' snugly engage the polygonal.l portion i of sai'dl 1 l y JOHN r.:ornormen;v i tf 

